Movie Review: Oz the Great and Powerful

Roth, J. (Producer). Raimi, S. (Director). (2013). Oz the great and powerful. [Motion picture]. United States: Roth Films. 130 minutes

Primary genre: Fantasy

Other elements: friendship, loss, politics, adventure

Rated: PG

Synopsis:

Oscar (Oz) Diggs, a magician in a small-time traveling circus, is certain that there are opportunities out there for him become a great man. When a storm hits the Kansas location he is finishing up at he is caught in a tornado that transports him to another world entirely, the Land of Oz. His appearance and name set off a series of events that leave him mistaken for the great magician this world has been waiting for. Political unrest plagues this world and it will be up to Oz to decide which side is telling the truth and to help them set things to right. 

Review:

To my understanding, Frank L. Baum never wrote a prequel for his Oz series. I am a SciFi reader and with any series in that genre there is a great chance there will be a prequel story so I have just come to expect it for the most part. I always enjoy getting a look at the back-story, finding out what made certain characters turn out the way they did.

Oz the Great and Powerful does give me that look at the characters I grew up reading about and watching on TV. I tried to stay away from reviews before I went to see the movie. I always like to go in with an open mind and just (hopefully) enjoy the experience. I did just happen to come across one descriptor of the story line that gave me an indication of the way the story was going to progress. At first I was confused as to why they made Oz a womanizer, but once I was in the theater watching the progression it became very clear. His actions are never shown past kissing, which allows this movie to stay in the PG range. But, there are references to past and present interactions, which keeps it interesting for older viewers who are able to make that connection.

I thought it was great that they used the same actors from his real life to populate the Land of Oz. These were the people that Oz had failed in the real world and now he was given the chance to redeem himself and prove that he was the great man he talked about being.

I am not certain of the interest younger generations have in the Wizard of Oz movie that inspired this prequel. But, this was definitely created with younger generations interests in mind. They poke fun at the singing that occurred in the first one, increased the amount of action and destruction, and present characters that have a modern feel to them. But there are also elements in the movie that can only be caught by those who have watched the original film that inspired this one.